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Camarillo, February 1, 2008. SolarWorld’s Camarillo solar photovoltaic (PV) factory hosted a roundtable discussion about energy conservation and renewable energy yesterday between City of Camarillo, Ventura County, and University of California representatives with Dr. Jürgen Rüttgers, Prime Minister of North Rhine Westphalia, Germany.
Following the discussion, all of the guests were treated to a tour of SolarWorld’s factory, which has been manufacturing PV modules since 1977. SolarWorld is investing over $30 million this year to double the production capacity to 100 MW by the end of 2008. Guests were also introduced to SolarWorld’s student intern Roland Libor, who told them about Bochum University’s SolarWorld-sponsored solar racing team, which won the design award at last year’s World Solar Challenge in Australia and is also entered in this year’s North American Solar Challenge in July.
Prime Minister Ruttgers, who served as Germany’s Federal Minister of Education, Research, Science, and Technology from 1994 to 1998, is visiting Camarillo as part of a national informational tour of the USA. He used the occasion to talk about Germany’s successful renewable energy programs as well to solicit advice from local officials about localized conservation and renewable energy programs.
The roundtable discussion, moderated by Cheryl Collart, Director of the Ventura County Regional Energy Alliance, included Bill Burratto, President of Ventura County Economic Development Association, Don Waunch, Vice Mayor of Camarillo, and Professor Ernst Ulrich von Weizäcker, Dean of the Donald Bren School of Environmental Science and Management at University of California, Santa Barbara (UCSB), focused on energy policy issues at the local and state levels. Professor von Weizäcker is a well known statesman, author and environmentalist who served in the German Parliament as well as with the United Nations before joining the faculty of UCSB in 2006.
Boris Klebensberger, Chief Operating Officer of SolarWorld AG, welcomed the visitors to SolarWorld and gave them an overview of the company’s US facilities in California, Oregon and Washington State. SolarWorld is the biggest manufacturer of PV technology in the United States.
Prime Minister Ruttgers continued his tour of California and was scheduled to meet with Governor Schwarzenegger and other state officials later that day.
About SolarWorld AG: The SolarWorld Group (ISIN: DE0005108401) is among the top trio of the solar power industry worldwide. The group is dedicated exclusively to the core business of solar energy, combining all stages of the solar value chain, from the raw material silicon to turn-key solar power plants. The company operates production facilities in Germany, Sweden and the USA. In California the largest production site in the USA for solar modules and in Oregon the largest production site in the USA for solar wafers and cells are being created. In Freiberg in Saxony the group operates one of the world’s most advanced integrated solar production facilities. Among the currently most important sales markets are Germany, the USA and in the rest of Europe especially Spain. Sales offices in Germany, Spain, California, South Africa and Singapore service the international solar markets. In addition to on-grid solar power products the group increasingly distributes rural solar power solutions internationally that can make an important contribution to the sustainable economic development of rural regions.
After the IPO at the end of 1999, the company developed within a few years into one of the largest fully integrated solar technology groups. At the end of the third quarter of 2007 some 1,969 people were working for the group. At the stock exchange SolarWorld AG is listed among others in the technology index TecDAX, in the Öko-DAX, in the Dow Jones STOXX 600, in the international MSCI Index as well as in the sustainability indices DAXglobal Alternative Energy and NAI.
SolarWorld AG is also getting involved at the social policy level in order to push ahead the principle of sustainability and to sharpen public awareness of resource and climate protection. Moreover, SolarWorld is involved at the sociopolitical level in order to further the sustainability notion and raise awareness for climate and resources protection.
Contact:
Anne Schneider
SolarWorld Industries America
4650 Adohr Lane, Camarillo, CA 93012
Phone 805 388 6285
Cell 805 444 7425 / www.solarworld-usa.com / a.schneider(at)solarworld-usa.com
SolarWorld AG Investor Relations / Marketing Communications
Kurt-Schumacher-Str. 12-14, D-53113 Bonn, Germany
Phone +49 228 55920 470
Fax +49 228 55920 9470 / placement(at)solarworld.de / www.solarworld.de
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